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Architect says doors hardened, outlines timeline for House-side screening vestibule amid budget concerns
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Summary
Thomas Austin told lawmakers the AOC has hardened doors and windows across the Capitol, is pursuing a West Front security expansion, and expects to award a contract for the South pedestrian screening vestibule for the House side in late 2025 with construction beginning next year; committee members pressed on how budget cuts would affect security.
Thomas Austin, the Architect of the Capitol, told the House Committee on House Administration that the AOC has hardened and replaced doors and windows on the U.S. Capitol and has a multi-pronged plan for additional exterior security improvements.
Austin described recent activity that included door and frame replacements, expanded camera coverage, added proximity card readers and planning for lighting and bollard upgrades on the West Front. He said the South pedestrian screening vestibule to serve the House side is fully designed and will go to acquisition this fall. “We expect a contract award either at the end of this calendar year or very shortly thereafter,” Austin said, and he projected construction would begin next year and finish in time for the 2028 presidential inauguration.
Members pressed how funding pressures would affect security projects. Representative Torres and Representative Morelli noted recent budget reductions: Austin said the AOC received a substantial appropriation increase in fiscal year 2023 that funded many security efforts and that the agency’s security work has been less affected to date by the fiscal year 2025 continuing resolution and by the House Republican FY 2026 legislative-branch proposal. He warned, however, that routine capital renewal projects — including rotational barrier and checkpoint replacements — have been deferred and that continued cuts would raise risk as deferred maintenance accumulates.
Representative Morelli asked specifically about the screening vestibules and their schedule; Austin reiterated the acquisition timeline and the two‑year construction window, saying the South vestibule should be complete “by the summer of ’28.”
Committee members also questioned whether the AOC has sufficient contingency allowances amid higher construction costs. Austin said that during the pandemic and recent market instability the AOC had added contingency factors to construction estimates and now typically builds some contingency into project budgets to reduce the chance of cost escalation.
Lawmakers asked for continued updates on security funding and timing. The AOC said project schedules and procurement milestones would be shared with the committee as they firm up.
